US stocks reduced losses Monday after opening sharply lower, following a decline in European shares on the collapse of weekend talks between Greece and its creditors. Greece and its creditors failed to reach a deal over the weekend because Athens did not accept demands for deeper reforms of pensions, value-added tax (VAT), and of its administration, labor markets, and industry. The European Commission said Monday that Greece's creditors have made substantial concessions in talks on new funding in exchange for reforms. European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi said Monday the ECB would continue approving emergency funding for Greek banks as long as they have enough cash and collateral to operate, but he said a positive outcome to the crisis was the responsibility of Greek officials. U.S. economic reports were mixed Monday. Industrial production fell unexpectedly in May, largely due to less oil refining, while homebuilder sentiment rose more than expected. The U.S. dollar was slightly higher versus other major currencies. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures fell about 50 cents, or 0.6 percent, to around $59.50 a barrel in early-afternoon trade on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold futures rose slightly to above $1,180 an ounce. The Dow Jones industrial average was down about 0.7 percent in early-afternoon trade on Wall Street, following a bigger decline earlier in the session. United Technologies led most Dow components lower after announcing it would sell or spin off its Sikorsky helicopter unit. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 0.5 percent, with information technology (IT) leading eight sectors lower, and utilities and energy the only gainers. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index lost about 0.6 percent after earlier dropping 1 percent. The exchange's biotechnology index fell, and shares of Apple were down about 0.5 percent.
